Category Archives: Weekly Financial News

Housing Construction, Sales Strong, Interest Rates Still Ultra-Low

The Mortgage Corner Housing starts are being hit by huge swings. November starts fell 18.7 percent in November to a much lower-than-expected 1.090 million annualized rate following an upward revised gain of 27.4 percent to 1.340 million in October, says … Continue reading

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Janet Yellen and The Fed’s Rate Hike(s)

The Mortgage Corner The Federal Reserve on Wednesday raised a key U.S. interest rate for the first time in a year and signaled a more aggressive approach in 2017, when incoming president Donald Trump plans a so-called ‘full-throttle’ strategy to … Continue reading

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Trump Voters and The Drug Epidemic

Popular Economics Weekly Why should so many rust-belt citizens vote for President-Elect Donald Trump, who is patently against the interest of working class voters? I am speaking of his promise to revoke Obamacare, which will make the 20-30 million dependent … Continue reading

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Why Are Consumers Happier?

Financial FAQs Why are consumers much happier during these holidays? The University of Michigan’s consumer sentiment index for November jumped 6.6 points to a six-month high while the Conference Board’s consumer confidence index jumped 6.3 points to 107.1 for its … Continue reading

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4.6% Unemployment–178,000 Payroll Jobs in November

Popular Economics Weekly Nonfarm payrolls rose 178,000 in November to just beat out expectations with revisions no factor, says Econoday. A sharp downward revision to October, now at 142,000, was offset by a nearly as sharp upward revision to September, … Continue reading

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GDP Growth, Consumer Confidence Soar

Financial FAQs The economy grew at the fastest pace in over two years in the third quarter, as consumers, business investment and government increased spending. Gross domestic product expanded at a 3.2 percent annual rate in the Commerce Department’s second … Continue reading

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Conforming Mortgage Limits Rise for 2017

Financial FAQs The Federal Housing Finance Authority, or FHFA, just announced it is increasing the limit for conforming mortgages from $417,000 to $424,100 in most regions of the United States starting Jan. 1, 2017—the first such increase since 2006. The … Continue reading

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Conforming Mortgage Limits Rise for 2017

Financial FAQs The Federal Housing Finance Authority, or FHFA, just announced it is increasing the limit for conforming mortgages from $417,000 to $424,100 in most regions of the United States starting Jan. 1, 2017—the first such increase since 2006. This … Continue reading

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Record Retail Sales, Higher Growth Ahead?

Financial FAQs It looks like Q4 GDP could be higher than the Third Quarter’s initial estimate of 2.9 percent growth. That’s because retail sales and wholesale inventories, both major contributors to growth, are surging. Retail sales jumped 0.8 percent in … Continue reading

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Will Prez-Elect Trump Now Settle His Federal Racketeering Charges?

Popular Economics Weekly Donald Trump, among his many court battles, has three civil lawsuits that accuse him, his eponymous school, the university’s former president, and an LLC behind the venture of fraud, breach of contract, false advertising and racketeering, a … Continue reading

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